Rheumatoid arthritis patient antibodies highly recognize IL-2 in the immune response pathway involving IRF5 and EBV antigens

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic autoimmune disease characterized by a progressive joint damage due to largely unknown environmental factors acting in concert with risk alleles conferring genetic susceptibility. A major role has been attributed to viral infections that include past contacts with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) and, more recently, to non-protein coding sequences of human endogenous retrovirus K (HERV-K) integrated in the human genome. Molecular mimicry between viral and self proteins is supposed to cause the loss of immune tolerance in predisposed hosts. There are evidences that anti-IL-2 antibodies (Abs) are present in subjects affected by autoimmune diseases and may be responsible for alterations in regulatory T cell responses. In this study, we evaluated the levels of Abs against IL-2, viral epitopes and interferon regulatory factor 5 (IRF5) in 140 RA patients and 137 healthy controls (HCs). Ab reactivity reached the highest levels for IRF5, EBV and IL-2 (56%, 44% and 39%, respectively) in RA with significantly lower values among HCs (7–9%, p <  0.0001), which suggests a possible cross-reaction between IRF5/EBV homologous antigens and shifts in T cell balance disrupted by anti-IL-2 Abs

Effect of Colic Vein Ligature in Rats with Loperamide-Induced Constipation

Introduction. Medical treatment in chronic constipation is not always successful. Surgery is indicated in unresponsive selected severe cases. This study presents the distal venous colic ligation in rat as a novel surgical approach. Materials and Methods. 16 rats (study group) were evaluated in 3 phases of 6 days each: A (normal conditions), B (loperamide-induced constipation), and C (colic vein legation) and compared with rats treated in phase C with PEG 4,000 (control group). Blood biochemical and physiological parameters, daily fecal water content (FWC), and histological analysis were performed in all study phases. Results. No biochemical and physiological parameters changes were observed. FWC decreased in phase B and increased in phase C in both groups with a grow up to 2.3-fold in study group compared to control (P < 0.0001). Moreover, in study group, a high number of colonic goblet cells were detected (phase C versus phase B: P < 0.001) while no differences were registered in control. Conclusion. By ligature of the colic vein in constipated rats, an increase in FWC and goblet cells higher than in PEG treated rats was detected. The described surgical procedure appeared effective, simple, and safe; further studies in animal models, however, are necessary to assess its clinical applicability

Heterogeneity of Antiphospholipid Syndrome (APS) as Characterized by Brain Perfusion Techniques. Towards New Ways of Syndrome Characterization

Antiphospholipid Syndrome (APS) syndrome is an autoimmune condition that affects the way that blood cells in humans bind together. Though the cause of APS is unclear, researchers believe that many factors have an impact on developing this pathological condition. Phospholipids (PLs) play numerous central roles in biological systems, and processes of biological systems regulation act through the liberation of a vast amount of different signalling molecules, which are also involved in the modulation of cell proliferation, inflammation, oxidative stress, neurotransmission and many other processes.A global landmark, holistic, is required to evaluate different phenotypes in APS. All thecriteria validated for the APS diagnosislead to an extremely heterogeneous landmark of the pathology and related to several manifestations in different systems. Heterogeneity also characterizes the SPECT acquisition of the patients and it is connected to several neurological and underestimates symptoms of the pathology. We present some examples to highlight the connection between heterogeneity in SPECT and APS markers of pathology indicating the needs to approach to the Syndrome in a holistic way. At the end of the paper we suggested the multidisciplinary approach that we are tuning for our analysis, approach based on Imaging, Metabolomic and Clinical evaluation, including mental health test for a neuropsychiatric characterization of the pathology

QT and QT dispersion intervals in long-standing and moderately active rheumatoid arthritis: results from a multicentre cross-sectional study

To define the prevalence of prolonged QT interval and QT dispersion (QTd) in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients and in a control population

Safety and efficacy of ketorolac continuous infusion for multimodal analgesia of vaso-occlusive crisis in patients with sickle cell disease

Pain is an hallmark of sickle-cell-related acute clinical manifestations as part of acute vaso-occlusive crisis (VOC). In SCD pain has different origins such as vascular or neuropathic pain, which requires multimodal analgesia. This is based on the administration of drugs with different pharmacological mechanisms of action, maximizing analgesia and minimizing their adverse events and the risk of drug-addition in patients experiencing acute-recurrent pain events as in SCD. Ketorolac is a potent non-narcotic analgesic, being relatively safe and effective during pain-management in children and adults. Up to now, there is a lack of safety information on continuous infusion ketorolac as used to control acute pain in patients with SCD, and the benefits/risks ratio needs to be investigated. Here, we report for the first time the safety profile of ketorolac in the special population of patients with SCD. We confirmed that ketorolac in combination with tramadol, an opioid like molecule, is effective in pain control of adult patients with SCD experiencing acute severe VOCs defined by pain visual analog scale. Our study shows that short term (72&nbsp;h) continuous infusion of ketorolac plus tramadol is not associated with adverse events such as liver or kidney acute disfunction or abnormalities in coagulation parameters during patients' hospitalization and within 30 days after patients discharge. This is extremely important for patients with SCD, who should have access to multimodal therapy to control recurrent acute pain crisis in order to limit central sensitization a fearsome issue of undertreated recurrent acute pain and of chronic pain

past present and future ultrasonographic techniques for analyzing ovarian masses

Ultrasonography is today the method of choice for distinguishing between benign and malignant adnexal pathologies. Using pattern recognition several types of tumors can be recognized according to their characteristic appearance on gray-scale imaging. Color Doppler imaging should be used only to perform a semiquantitative color score or evaluate the flow location. International Ovarian Tumor Analysis group had standardized definitions characterizing adnexal masses and suggested the use of 'simple rules' in premenopausal women. Recently, the use of 3D vascular indices has been proposed but its potential use in clinical practice is debated. Also computerized aided diagnosis algorithms showed encouraging results to be confirmed in the future

Effect of Colic Vein Ligature in Rats with Loperamide-Induced Constipation

Introduction. Medical treatment in chronic constipation is not always successful. Surgery is indicated in unresponsive selected severe cases. This study presents the distal venous colic ligation in rat as a novel surgical approach. Materials and Methods. 16 rats (study group) were evaluated in 3 phases of 6 days each: A (normal conditions), B (loperamide-induced constipation), and C (colic vein legation) and compared with rats treated in phase C with PEG 4,000 (control group). Blood biochemical and physiological parameters, daily fecal water content (FWC), and histological analysis were performed in all study phases. Results. No biochemical and physiological parameters changes were observed. FWC decreased in phase B and increased in phase C in both groups with a grow up to 2.3-fold in study group compared to control (P &lt; 0.0001). Moreover, in study group, a high number of colonic goblet cells were detected (phase C versus phase B: P &lt; 0.001) while no differences were registered in control. Conclusion. By ligature of the colic vein in constipated rats, an increase in FWC and goblet cells higher than in PEG treated rats was detected. The described surgical procedure appeared effective, simple, and safe; further studies in animal models, however, are necessary to assess its clinical applicability

The Bostrichidae of the Maltese Islands (Coleoptera)

The Bostrichidae of the Maltese Islands are reviewed. Ten species are recorded with certainty from this Archipelago, of which 6 namely, Trogoxylon impressum (Comolli, 1837), Amphicerus bimaculatus (A.G. Olivier, 1790), Heterobostrychus aequalis (Waterhouse, 1884), Sinoxylon unidentatum (Fabricius, 1801), Xyloperthella picea (A.G. Olivier, 1790) and Apate monachus Fabricius, 1775 are recorded for the first time. Two of the mentioned species (H. aequalis and S. unidentatum) are alien and recorded only on the basis of single captures and the possible establishment of these species is discussed. Earlier records of Scobicia pustulata (Fabricius, 1801) from Malta are incorrect and should be attributed to S. chevrieri (A. Villa & J.B. Villa, 1835). A zoogeographical analysis and an updated checklist of the 12 species of Bostrichidae recorded from the Maltese Islands and neighbouring Sicilian islands (Pantelleria, Linosa and Lampedusa) are also provided. Rhizopertha dominica (Fabricius, 1792) form granulipennis Lesne in Beeson & Bhatia, 1937 from Uttarakhand (northern India) was overlooked by almost all subsequent authors. Its history is summarized and the following new synonymy is established: Rhizopertha dominica (Fabricius, 1792) form granulipennis Lesne in Beeson & Bhatia, 1937 = Rhyzopertha dominica (Fabricius, 1792), syn. n. Finally, records of Amphicerus bimaculatus from Azerbaijan, of Bostrichus capucinus (Linnaeus, 1758) from Jordan and Syria, of Scobicia chevrieri from Jordan and Italy, of Xyloperthella picea from Italy, and of Apate monachus from Corsica (France) and Italy, are also provided.peer-reviewe

Deep Infiltrating Endometriosis: Comparison Between 2-Dimensional Ultrasonography (US), 3-Dimensional US, and Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Objectives—To evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of 2-dimensional (2D) and 3dimensional (3D) transvaginal ultrasonography (US) in comparison with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for identification of deep infiltrating endometriosis. Methods—In this prospective observational study, 159 premenopausal women who underwent surgery for a clinical suspicion of deep infiltrating endometriosis were prospectively enrolled. All women underwent 2DUS, 3DUS, and MRI. The following 3 locations of deep endometriosis were considered: (1) intestinal; (2) other posterior lesions (retrocervical septum, rectovaginal septum, uterosacral ligaments, and vaginal fornix); and (3) anterior. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of 2D and 3D transvaginal US in comparison with MRI were determined. Results—Intestinal deep infiltrating endometriosis was identified by 2DUS in 56 of 66 patients, by 3DUS in 59 of 66, and by MRI in 61 of 66. A receiver operating characteristic curve analysis showed optimal results for 2DUS, 3DUS, and MRI (areas under the curve, 0.86, 0.915, and 0.935, respectively) with a statistically significant difference between 2DUS and MRI (P=.0103), even when the 95% confidence interval showed an overlap. Other posterior deep infiltrating endometriosis was identified by 2DUS in 55 of 75 patients, by 3DUS in 65 of 75, and by MRI in 66 of 75. A receiver operating characteristic curve analysis showed very good results for 2DUS, 3DUS, and MRI (areas under the curve, 0.801, 0.838, and 0.857) with no statistically significant differences. In the 12 women with deep infiltrating endometriosis in the anterior location, the nodules were correctly identified by 2DUS in 3 of 12 patients, by 3DUS in 5 of 12, and by MRI in 6 of 12. Conclusions—Our results seem to suggest that there is a statistically significant difference between 2DUS and MRI for the intestinal location of deep infiltrating endometriosis, whereas no differences were found among the techniques for the other locations